Blackstone buys PAG's 50% stake in Sydney office complex

Blackstone has acquired a 50% stake in a Sydney office complex from PAG, a Hong Kong-based private equity group.

IPE Real Assets understands that the acquisition of the stake in the tower at 60 Margaret Street was done at “around AUD400m” (€253m), valuing the whole complex at AUD800m.

The office tower, co-owned with Mirvac, has an adjoining retail component, Metcentre.

PAG placed its stake on the market in June this year. It had bought the asset from an Australian super fund, MTTA, for AUD300m in 2015.

Mirvac had the preemptive right to purchase the PAG stake but it declined to take up the rights. Mirvac said it would retain its existing 50% interest in the asset.

On completion of the transaction, Mirvac will provide junior debt funding of AUD63m on a commercial interest rate to Blackstone.

Further, Mirvac will provide investment and property management services as part of the transaction.

This is the group’s second co-investment with Blackstone. In 2014, Blackstone bought a 50% stake in 275 Kent Street, Westpac Place, an office complex from Mirvac for AUD435m.

In June this year, Blackstone exited from the investment with Mirvac assigning its preemptive right to buy the US private equity group’s interest to industry super property asset manager, ISPT, for AUD721.9m.